The present invention relates to a device to permit a tennis player easily to take balls from the pockets of his shorts.
Taking balls out is conventionally carried out of course with the help of a hand. Given that the tennis shirt is often worn outside the shorts, the player is impeded in his movement for taking out the balls.
The result of a preliminary search of French patent 970648900 of May 16, 1997, discloses the existence of three U.S. patents but which do not have the same object as that of the present application:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,458,365 of Jul. 7, 1984 discloses a nursing blouse,
U.S. Pat. No. 4,663,782 of May 12, 1987 discloses a nursing blouse,
U.S. Pat. No. 5,234,214 of Aug. 10, 1993 discloses a tennis ball holder.
Certain tennis shirts have a region recessed by the manufacturer so as to avoid this problem encountered by players in training and at matches. This process does not eliminate the indicated drawbacks in use.
The device according to the invention permits overcoming this drawback. It thus comprises according to a first characteristic, a system of snaps as well as cutouts in the tennis shirt adapted to facilitate taking out balls. The male snap members are located in the middle of the lower end of the seams of the shirt, on both sides, and the female snap members above these latter, at a distance such that upon snapping, the passage of the hand of the player is easy, through the space exposed. The cutouts are a triangular shape and four in number, one of each side of the two male snap members. Thus, when the players snap the male and female members together, and thanks to the cutouts, access to the pockets of the shorts is given.
According to particular embodiments:
The visible portion, when snapping is effected, can be used as an advertising support.
The snap system can be replaced by strips of Velcro (trademark for hook and eye strips)
The shapes of the triangular cutouts can be modified to be oblique
The invention can serve as well for righthanded people as for lefthanded people because the device is repeated on the two sides of the tennis shirt.
The accompanying drawings show the invention: